First Trip
by 2queens1prince
Summary: Combination of two prompts: Elizabeth pursues Henry and Elizabeth meets Henry's family for the first time because of a death in the family.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This fic started out as one prompt and morphed into the second. Of course, I'm 24 pages into the story, so I'm dividing it up into chapters. This first part doesn't go into the second prompt, but we'll get there in the second chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Any reviews are much appreciated.

These are lilacmermaid33 Tumblr prompts. She has the best prompts ever!

Madam Secretary Prompt: Elizabeth spends a long time pursuing Henry before he agrees to go out with her. (Or vice versa).

Madam Secretary Prompt: The first time Elizabeth visits Henry's family in Pittsburgh isn't a holiday or school vacation - it's to attend a funeral.

Chapter 1

Sophomore, Elizabeth Adams speed walked across campus. She stopped to talk to her Statistics professor after class and ended up walking back to his office discussing bias and its effect on the overall outcome of her end of semester project. Of course, Professor Jenkins's office was the opposite direction of the library, which was where she needed to be ten minutes ago.

She shifted her backpack on her shoulder, redistributing the weight as she tried to pick up her pace. Elizabeth knew that her boyfriend of three months, junior, Henry McCord, would probably not even notice that she was late. He was in the middle of research to lay groundwork for his senior thesis and to say he sometimes got preoccupied was an understatement. Her thoughts turned to Henry as she thought of him bent over the long study table, papers scattered around, furiously jotting notes. She'd call his name and he'd look up with his wide, bright smile, his glasses precariously perched on his nose. He'd push them up with his index finger allowing her to really see his brown eyes, a sparkle in them that she knew was because he saw her. A wave of warmth flooded her body as she thought about the scene.

She'd never felt this strongly about a guy before. It was true that before Henry she'd never been longer than a couple months without a boyfriend, since she turned 16 and her grandfather gave her permission to date. Boyfriend was actually a strong word. She was never without a boy. She usually moved on long before the word "commitment" could be used, or even before anything physical could happen. She was pretty, reasonably athletic-although not particularly graceful, and she wasn't afraid to try new things. It made her popular in the high school crowd and so far, she'd found her fair share of guys her freshman year. Elizabeth was out to have fun. She didn't want a relationship, at least until she met Henry McCord.

She first saw Henry at Freshman Orientation her first week on campus. There was a group of sophomore students who came back early to do a panel discussion about campus life as a freshman. She walked in with three or four guys, all vying for her attention. Elizabeth flirted with all of them, laughing at their ridiculous come-ons. She sat near the front of the lecture hall, bringing her posse with her, and caught the eye of a guy standing on the floor with a few other students.

Henry looked at the young woman that sat only four rows from the front. She was pretty, her long blond waves falling off her shoulders. Her eyes were a bright ocean blue and her laugh was beautiful. He watched her for a few minutes before turning away. It seemed she had plenty of company to keep her busy and casual dating wasn't his cup of tea. He turned back to the group he was with and joined back in.

It was fifteen minutes later that Elizabeth took notice of the young man with the sandy brown hair and hazel eyes seated third from the left on the panel before her. She squinted at his name tag, when he leaned back and laced his fingers behind his head. "Henry," she murmured to herself. "I need to meet him."

As soon as the discussion ended, she brushed off the guys, sending them to lunch without her. She made her way down the few steps to the floor and approached the small group that Henry was a part of. "Excuse me," she said, when there was a break in conversation. "I just wanted to thank all of you for coming back early to do this presentation. It was really very helpful."

"Sure thing, it wasn't anything big. I'm Joanie. This is Samantha-who goes by Sam, Elliot, Henry and Lisa."

"Hi. I'm Elizabeth. It was nice to meet you all." She gave them a wide smile and then directed it at Henry. "I'm off to lunch. I just thought I'd say thanks."

"You're welcome," Elliot said for the group and as soon as she started up the steps, he pushed an elbow into Henry's side. "Somebody's got the hots for you," he said under his breath, chuckling softly.

"Yeah, me and everyone else. Did you see the group of guys hanging on her coattails when she walked in?" Henry muttered.

"Ah, so you noticed her too." Lisa grinned at him. "It's the beginning of the end. Henry just noticed a girl."

"Oh would you stop? She is pretty, but I don't have the patience to fight off a hundred other guys to see if she has anything but looks. I've got other things to do." Henry said with finality.

"Right, because you have your nose stuck in a book 24/7. Isn't that right Professor?" Sam chimed in.

"I'm going to get lunch. I'm tired of listening to the peanut gallery offer commentary on my life." Henry said, as he walked up the stairs and away from the group.

"Aww, hell Henry. Don't go getting all ticked off. We've got to torment someone. Just so happens that you are the lucky person today," Elliot said.

"Um, yeah. I'm pretty sure you were all giving me crap yesterday," Lisa added. Henry turned and shrugged good naturedly and the rest of the group followed after him.

Elizabeth was sitting in the cafeteria when the group of sophomores came walking in. Elizabeth took note of them immediately, especially the one with the sandy brown hair. Just then he glanced her way and she gave him a dazzling smile. Henry just turned away and picked up his tray and headed across the room to get an entree.

Elizabeth was a little perturbed if she was honest with herself. How dare he ignore her? She didn't think that had ever happened before and she didn't like it one bit. Now it was going to be a mission to get Henry to notice her.

Henry caught her watching him and when she gave him a big smile, he turned away, trying to be kinder than he wanted to be. She was still surrounded by the guys from earlier in the lecture hall and she seemed to have accumulated a few more. He just needed to eat and leave.

By the end of first semester, Henry was having a serious problem. This girl, Elizabeth, seemed to show up everywhere he was, and while she never spoke to him, she always shot him that dazzling smile, and those eyes, God, he didn't want think about her eyes. Occasionally, he thought that he might actually go up and talk to her, but the fact that she was always surrounded by other guys, made him decide otherwise. Ball games, meals, special lectures, parties, it never failed, she was close by, and so were the others.

It was Wednesday of finals week. Henry trudged into the library at 9 am, coffee in hand, hoping to get just a little more studying in before his test at 11. He rounded the corner to sit in his favorite out of the way space and there she was, sitting sideways in the leather chair, her legs dangling off the side and crossed at the ankle. Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun, with two pencils sticking out of it and she was focused on what she was reading, tapping her pen on the edge of the page and biting her lower lip in concentration. Most noticeably, she was by herself, and Henry's stomach suddenly felt unsettled.

He nervously cleared his throat and she looked up and smiled, that big wide smile that he knew she only used on him. A fact he knew, because he had watched her all semester long. "I see you found my secret spot," he said.

"Oh," she blushed. "Is this your spot? I can move. I didn't know."

"That's alright. I can sit here." Henry set his things down on the opposite side of the coffee table between them. "Where's your fan club?" She gave him an odd look. "You know, the group of miscellaneous guys you seem to travel with."

"I don't know. I don't keep tabs on them. They usually find me, not the other way around." She stated it as a matter of fact and Henry was a little unnerved by her tone.

"I just assumed that you were going out with them."

"Wow! You're funny. You make me sound quite a bit cooler than I am. I have been on a date or two with most of them, because I like to go out and have fun, but I'm not interested in any of them, and they know it. I'm not really sure why they keep hanging around. Maybe it's my magnetic personality?" She laughed.

Henry settled back in the chair, trying to decide how serious she was. It was then that she flung her legs off the arm of the chair and spun around, put her elbows on her knees and looked him dead in the eye. "There's only one guy that I am even remotely interested in getting to know and he won't give me the time of day."

'Oh really. And who's that?" The question flew out of Henry's mouth before his better judgment could stop it.

"You. But, that ship's about to sail because I'm studying abroad next semester, so we'll see if I'm still interested when I come back." She dropped her book in her backpack and slung it over her shoulder as she stood. "You can have your spot back. Goodbye Henry."

Henry didn't move, but replayed those few minutes over and over again, wondering what kind of giant mistake he might have just made.

Henry didn't see Elizabeth again until the middle of October of that next year. She was sitting with a group of girls, focused on their conversation and she didn't see him. He was shocked to realize that he missed the big smile she would give him when she saw him. Henry went on about his day, but his thoughts never really strayed far from Elizabeth.

The night before Halloween, the Student Activities Office had arranged a Halloween Party and Hayride for all of the students. Henry walked around the practice fields where all kinds of various booths had been set up. His friends hadn't arrived yet and Henry was feeling a little out of place when he heard a familiar voice at his side. "Long time no see, stranger." The smile crept up on his face even before he turned to face her.

"Elizabeth. It's been quite a while. How have you been?" Henry was actually excited to get to talk to her.

"I'm good." She grinned at him. "If you'll notice, I'm missing my fan club. Isn't that what you called them?"

"I don't even remember now. Did they find someone else to hang around?" Henry queried.

"They found girlfriends I suppose." She shrugged. "And you, did you find a girlfriend in my absence?"

"I wasn't ever really looking for someone," Henry stated.

"Me either. So why don't you tell me about yourself, Mr. Henry McCord." Elizabeth shot Henry that dazzling smile as she hooked her arm through his and they walked off together.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thank you so much for the kind words. I'm glad you are enjoying this story. Hopefully, it will fill our MS need during hiatus.

Chapter 2

The Halloween party was the first of many dates, and by Thanksgiving, they decided to make it official. Now it was almost March and Elizabeth was admittedly head over heels, smitten with Henry. She felt connected to him in a way that she had never felt with anyone before. She wasn't sure it was love, but she was hoping Henry would be around long enough to find out.

The moment she hit the top of the third floor stairs in the library, she immediately knew something was wrong. Henry was sitting at his normal table, but there were no papers strewn about and he wasn't bent over old books from the archives. He was sitting with his elbows on the table, his head buried in his hands. Elizabeth pulled out the chair next to him and sat sideways on it facing him. Her hand went to his back and up to the nape of his neck. "Henry, what's wrong?" When he looked up at her, she could see the tears forming in his eyes. "Come here," she said, scooting forward and leaning in to take his weight. He rested on her chest and she felt her shirt get wet as his silent tears fell. She held him close, her cheek resting on the top of his head.

Henry was overcome by grief. He'd received the phone call right before he left for the library. The news was devastating and there was only one person he wanted to see, only one person who could comfort him. Elizabeth. He knew she would be meeting him at the library after class, so he managed to hold himself together long enough to get to their spot. Now, as she held him, he could finally let go.

She had no idea how long they sat together, but he finally pulled himself off of her. "My mom called this morning. My grandma had a heart attack and passed away early this morning."

"Oh Henry, I'm so sorry." She leaned in, wrapped her arms around Henry once again and placed her head on his shoulder, holding him tight. "When do we need to leave?" she murmured.

The question took Henry off guard. "We?" he asked, tipping his head down to see her.

Elizabeth pulled away, a rose colored flush creeping across her face. "I-I-I just thought that you'd want me to go. It's fine if you don't." Her voice trailed off.

"No. That's not what I meant. I just figured we were too new and you wouldn't want to come home with me, especially to meet my family. I would love it if you came. I don't want to do this alone," he said.

Placing her hand on his cheek, she replied, "If you are dealing with something, and I might be able to help, I want to be there for you. Besides, I'm going to meet your family sometime, right?"

"Yeah, definitely. I was going to leave after I told you what was going on." Henry kissed her cheek. "Thank you for being so wonderful."

"Let's go by my room first and I'll pack and then I'll drive so you don't have to." Henry nodded at Elizabeth's suggestion and they were headed to Pittsburgh within the hour.

Elizabeth maneuvered her car onto the interstate and then settled in for the five hour drive. "How are you doing?" she asked.

"Alright I guess. I'm just thinking of things Grandma and I used to do, stories and stuff," Henry said, resting his head on the window.

"Would you tell me about her?"

Henry turned to look at Elizabeth. "Really? You want me to tell you old stories about someone you've never met and are never going-". Henry's voice trailed off as he realized that neither of them would ever see her alive again.

"I want to know about someone you love." She placed her hand on his knee. He took it and squeezed it before starting in on a three hour storytelling fest with his grandmother at the center of it. There were stories of playing cards, going to Mass, chasing down the runaway bunnies that escaped their cages, and her backing into the garbage cans at the end of the driveway. He told sweet stories of homemade cookies, and crocheted afghans made especially for her grandkids and bedtime stories she told when he stayed all night at her house. He actually found it very therapeutic, so by the time they made it to Pittsburgh, he was feeling better.

Henry directed Elizabeth to the correct exit and they made their way to his house. She pulled up and parked a few houses down due to the number of vehicles already in the drive and lining the street. Deciding to get their bags later, they went ahead and walked in. Elizabeth didn't think she'd ever seen so many people gathered in a room that size. It reminded her of the parties she'd been to when she first came to campus. Small houses hosting campus sized parties, with no room to move. At least no one was drunk. They walked in further and she thought she may have to amend that thought seeing empty beer bottles on every flat surface in the room.

Henry took her hand and pulling her through the crowd. He leaned back to talk in her ear, making sure she could hear. "Mom's probably in the kitchen." He pointed his head to the right and they weaved through the crowd to the kitchen. Joanna McCord had one hip leaned against the kitchen counter, holding a glass filled halfway with an amber liquid, talking to a group of women her age. Glancing around the room and seeing the drastic shift from beer bottles to hard liquor, Elizabeth assumed it wasn't iced tea in the glass.

Henry, still pulling Elizabeth behind him, walked up to his mom and put his hand on her shoulder. She turned, and seeing it was him, set her drink down and swept him into a tight hug. "How are you doing Mom?" he asked.

"I'm alright. Just unexpected, you know. How are you?" she asked.

"I spent the entire trip telling Grandma stories, so I'm actually feeling quite a bit better. Hey, you know how I told you I met someone? She's here." Henry turned and put his hand on Elizabeth's shoulder. "Mom, I want you to meet Elizabeth Adams. Elizabeth, this is my mom, Joanna."

"Call me Jo," she said, shaking Elizabeth's hand. "It's nice to meet you, although, I'm sorry the circumstances aren't a bit more joyous."

"I'm sorry about the loss of your mother, but I am glad to meet you. Henry tells some very wonderful and fun stories about his family and your mom sounds like she was quite a character," Elizabeth said.

"That she was," Jo said. "Henry, go away. Elizabeth and I are going to chat a while. There's a cooler on the front porch and your dad is out in the garage." Henry let go of Elizabeth's hand and raised his eyebrows at her as to question if she was okay.

Elizabeth laughed. "I'll yell if I need help," she said. Henry grinned and disappeared through the kitchen door back into the main room.

"Scotch?" Jo asked as she pulled a tumbler from the cabinet.

"I'm not a big drinker," Elizabeth answered. Jo chuckled and poured half a glass handing it to her. "If you're going to be around us very much, you're going to need to start." She handed Elizabeth the glass. "We're hard to take sober."

After meeting thirty people Elizabeth knew she would never remember, and likely never have reason to, Jo took her out to the sunroom where it was considerably quieter. "Henry tells me you stalked him."

"I'm pretty sure that's not how it went down," Elizabeth said, laughing. "I would say it was more like I was around and he avoided me at all costs. Well. Until he didn't." Jo smiled.

"Thank you for offering to come with him. I was worried about him driving up here. I knew he'd be a mess. He and my mom were very close." Jo placed her hand on Elizabeth's knee.

Elizabeth smiled. "I wouldn't want be anywhere else." A few ladies stepped out and needed assistance, so Jo excused herself.

Elizabeth made her way back through the house. Not seeing Henry, she headed out through the kitchen to check the garage. The garage door was open and there were several guys sitting around in a circle. As she approached, one of the men turned to look at her. She could have picked Patrick McCord from a line up anywhere. He looked exactly like Henry, only about 25 years older. "Hi. Have you seen Henry around?"

"He was out here to say hi, but he left. And you are?" Patrick, cocked his head to the side and narrowed his eyes.

"I'm Elizabeth Adams." In spite of her better judgment, Elizabeth adopted a slightly defensive tone. She decided she shouldn't leave that as her first impression. "Henry and I came together." She smiled.

"Ahh, that explains the ridiculously expensive car." He paused and then muttered, "The benefits of privilege."

"Excuse me?" Elizabeth asked, trying to ascertain where his prejudice was coming from and if it was directed at her.

"Everyone there looks down their noses at the working man. If you don't have money, you're nothing and I'm not a fan of that attitude." Patrick spat out the words like they tasted bitter in his mouth.

"So, anyone who you think has money, you lump into that boat? Sounds like you paint a broad stroke with that brush,"

"I call it like I see it." Patrick said and shrugged.

"You need glasses, because situations certainly aren't always what they seem, and that car is absolutely in no way indicative of my upbringing or level of privilege. I'll go look for Henry back inside. It was nice meeting you Mr. McCord." Elizabeth turned on her heel and headed back in the house. Once inside, she leaned against the door and took a deep breath. "Well, that didn't go very well," she mumbled.

"You must be Elizabeth." A teenage girl came bounding in through the kitchen. "I'm Erin, Henry's little sister. He said that if I saw you to let you know he's upstairs. His room's the second door on the left."

"Thank you Erin. It's nice to meet you." Elizabeth said as she started walking, snaking her way through the crowd to the staircase. In a moment, the noise level died down and Elizabeth could think again. She was certain that Henry escaped to his room to have a quiet moment. She knocked on the door. She heard the bed springs squeak and the shuffling of feet, then the door opened. "Hey there," she said.

"Hey. Sorry I ended up ditching you." He stepped aside so she could come in. Henry pushed the door shut behind her and Elizabeth sat on the edge of his bed. Henry pulled a chair out from under the desk and sat near her. "I made a lap around the house and realized there wasn't anyone I particularly wanted to hang out with other than you, and you were occupied with Mom. How was that by the way?" Henry asked.

"Your mom was nice. Your dad, well, I'm pretty sure he hates me." Elizabeth gave him a pained look and shrugged. "I'm not sure exactly what I said, but I'm sure I didn't make things any better."

Henry pinched the bridge of his nose. "I should've warned you to stay away from the garage. He has a hard time being decent anyway, but he's never likeable when he's been drinking. I'm sorry. Whatever he said isn't true. I'd like to say he didn't mean it, but he probably did and most of the time it's just easier to avoid him. I promise I'll be around to run interference next time."

"Eh, I can handle myself. I just don't want to make enemies on day one, you know? Erin seemed nice. I haven't run into the others. What are their names again?"

"Shane isn't here yet and Maureen is around. She was making out with some guy in the downstairs hallway when I came up her "

"What?" Elizabeth wondered if she heard that right. "Did you just say she was making out with some guy? Like, with everyone around? Is it her boyfriend or something?"

"Doubtful. Maureen doesn't have boyfriends. She has tagalongs, that are fair game for whatever, whenever she's in the mood." The disdain in his voice was obvious.

Elizabeth's eyes went wide. "That was your deal." She slapped him in the arm. "You didn't want to have anything to do with me, because you thought I was like her."

"Well, yes," Henry replied never really having consciously putting the two together, but realizing it was true.

"Well, I'm not." She crossed her arms over her chest. She tried to tell herself not to be annoyed, but she was. "Do you think I slept with those guys from freshman year?"

Henry sighed. This was not the conversation he wanted to be having and he didn't need Elizabeth pissed off at him. "Back then, yeah I did."

"And now?" she asked.

"I don't care if you did or not." Henry knew this wasn't the right answer, but they hadn't talked about it because he purposely hadn't brought it up. He figured ignorance was bliss. He didn't want to know the details of how many people she'd been with.

"But obviously you think I did, and you are wrong." Elizabeth didn't try to hide her hurt. Tears welled up in her eyes. She stood and paced his bedroom floor. "Just because you see a girl with a bunch of guys doesn't mean she's fucking them. Did you ever see anything inappropriate? Any kissing, touching, anything? I can tell you that you didn't because it never happened." She stood and paced the room. "Yeah, I did go out on a date or two with most of them. We might have had dinner or watched a movie or taken a walk, then it was a nice thank you at the door. I've kissed four guys in my life, not counting my father and brother. Why is it that everyone assumes the worst from women? I am so pissed off right now. Dammit Henry. I expected more from you. I can see you maybe thinking that before you knew me, but now?

"Listen. I'm sorry. My point of view has been a little jaded. I didn't want to think about it at all. Would it have been better if I'd asked? I doubt it." Henry grabbed her hands. "What can I do to fix this?"

"I don't know." She pulled her hands away from him and sat back down on the edge of the bed. "I can kind of understand you thinking that when you first met me. I mean I think it's ridiculous to assume that I'm sleeping with multiple guys given the little information you had, but I'll give you a bye since you came in with some preconceived notions. But, we've spent months together and you still thought that I did?" Suddenly, she jumped off the bed. "I need some time to cool off. I'm going to take a drive." She stepped past Henry and walked out of the room.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: I finally finished this prompt and it ended up being 29 pages, so there will be a couple more updates after this. Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Elizabeth shut the door softly behind her as she left. Henry stood and pushed the chair back before laying down on his bed. He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. "What the hell just happened?" he asked himself. Henry wasn't sure, but he felt he was to blame. He rolled over and let the tears fall, both for his grandma and Elizabeth.

Elizabeth walked down the sidewalk and almost made it past the driveway leading to the garage, when she heard Patrick call out. "Just where do you think you're going?"

"I'm taking a drive." Elizabeth answered, her voice wavering just the slightest. She was too angry to be talking to Patrick.

He came out of the garage and starting walking toward the street. "A girl like you has no business driving that car around Pittsburgh. You get in the wrong neighborhood and it won't end well," he said.

"And how exactly do you define a girl like me?" she asked spinning around and walking back toward him.

Patrick seemed a little taken aback by her boldness. "I meant nice looking white girl in a high dollar car." His tone softened. "When you leave, take a right at the first light and continue straight. It'll take you down by the mall. You just don't want to end up in certain neighborhoods. That's all."

"That better be all," she muttered, walking to the car. She got in and drove away, hoping she could make it out of sight before her tears made seeing too difficult.

Half an hour later, she sat in a movie theater parking lot with a large tub of buttered popcorn in her lap. The guy in the ticket booth at the theater had given her an odd look when she walked in and strolled past him to get in the concession line. As soon as she got her popcorn, she walked back out. Now, she was munching her popcorn mindlessly as she thought about her dad.

The BMW was her dad's dream car. He'd been saving for it as long as she could remember. Then he got a big bonus from his job as a grocery store manager and because her uncle was a mechanic and knew a guy who wanted to sell, it was finally enough to buy what he wanted. Elizabeth smiled as she remembered how happy he was when he got home. He made everyone come out and ride around the block with him. She chuckled to herself as she thought about how she and her brother, Will, had teased him about how silly it was to drive around the block. He loved this car. He only had it for a couple weeks when they had the accident and were killed.

After the accident, the BMW was put into storage. Grandpa had taught her to drive his car and then she went to boarding school and didn't need a car, but it had been offered to her when she headed to UVA for her sophomore year. They only lived an hour away, but having a car on campus would be nice. Elizabeth wasn't sure about it until she sat behind the steering wheel. She swore she could smell him and she could feel his joy all over again. Will was adamantly opposed to being near the car at all, so she took it. Sitting where her father sat, made her feel a little closer to him.

"Daddy, what am I going to do?" she murmured. She still just couldn't grasp the idea that Henry would believe she was the kind of person to be sleeping around with anyone and everyone.

She closed her eyes and calmed down, then it came to her. "Go back, tell him why it made you so upset, listen to him and then forgive him." She swore she caught a hint of her father's aftershave and smiled. Putting the popcorn tub in the passenger seat, she backed the car up and headed toward the McCord house.

After pulling himself back together, Henry went to sit on the front steps and wait for Elizabeth. As afternoon fell into evening, it got colder, but Henry was numb on the inside, so the cold didn't bother him much. He didn't even notice Patrick sitting down next to him. "Your girl is a deal," Patrick said.

Henry shook his head, emerging from his thoughts. "What?" he asked.

"I said your girl is a deal."

"Why do you say that?" Henry asked.

"She doesn't back down from an argument, and doesn't mind starting one either."

"That's true," Henry said.

"She come from money?" he asked.

"Why does it matter?" Henry wanted to know. "She's the same person regardless."

"People with money just think differently than us. It doesn't make them bad exactly, just when you don't have to think about money, you have a different attitude."

"Elizabeth herself has some money from her parents' estate. Her parents really didn't have much in the way of day to day cash, but had good insurance. She has the car because it was her dad's and it was given to her when he died. Don't mess with the car. It's sentimental." Patrick nodded.

"You managed to piss her off?" Patrick asked.

"Yep."

"That was stupid."

"Yep."

"Is she coming back?"

"I hope so."

"You better get good at gravelling real quick if you want to keep her around." Henry nodded. He wasn't used to his dad being this nice or this conversational, especially about someone he was dating. "I think she's coming down the road." Patrick stood and said, "Good luck."

With most of the friends and extended family gone, Elizabeth was able to pull up in front of the house. As she put the car in park, Henry tapped on the window. She rolled it down. "May I?" he asked, gesturing toward the passenger seat.

She nodded and he opened the door. "I've been replaced already?" He pointed at the popcorn tub in the passenger seat. She laughed in spite of herself.

"We have an understanding, popcorn and I." She smiled slightly, taking the tub, meeting his gaze as he sat opposite her.

"Look," they said simultaneously.

Elizabeth gestured to Henry. "Go first."

"Okay. I'm sorry I was such a jerk. I shouldn't have been so judgmental in the first place and then when we started going out, I should've known better. In my heart, I really did know better, I swear. My brain just thought it was protecting itself by thinking the worst, so when you ditched me for someone better, I could have some kind of, I don't know, reason it happened. That sounds pretty dumb, I know, but it's all I got. I really am sorry."

"I may have overreacted. I promised myself when my parents died that I would live each day to the fullest and make sure I was having a good time. I didn't necessarily take into account of what that might appear to be to others. It is wrong to judge like that, but I know people do it and I catch myself doing the same kind of thing sometimes. If you were thinking about what you know about your sister, it seems like a reasonable assumption. I just read it as an attack on me as a person, and it hurts that you would think of me like that. But, I talked to my dad and he told me I need to forgive you."

"I like your dad a lot," Henry said, making Elizabeth laugh. "Come on, let's go in." They walked hand in hand up the sidewalk. Before they stepped inside, Henry asked, "Exactly what did you say to my dad? He was kinder to me a few minutes ago than he's been most of my life."

"Nothing important," she said, shrugging.

In the next two days that passed, Elizabeth didn't think she had ever seen so much food in one place. Casseroles and deli trays littered every flat surface of the downstairs. The sun room was filled with food and the windows opened to keep it cool. It was a constant buffet and there was a constant stream of people filing through to eat the older items before new arrived. A constant string of people, eating, drinking and being loud.

The morning of the visitation, Elizabeth sat cross legged on the end of Henry's bed, while Henry finished getting dressed. "I think this may be the first moment of quiet since I walked in this house," she said, closing her eyes and smiling.

"Don't get used to it. Maureen and Erin aren't up yet. When they get up the volume level doubles." Elizabeth laughed at that. She hadn't known them long, but they were both loud and talked a lot. Henry groaned and adjusted his tie for the third time.

"Here. Let me do it," Elizabeth said, pulling herself off the bed to stand in front of him. She untangled it and started over. She flipped, twisted and laced the end through and pulled it snug. "There you go," she said, placing her hand on his chest.

"Elizabeth," Henry started, but then stopped, his mouth still open like words should be coming out but they were not. She looked up at him and the look he gave her sent shivers up her spine.

No one had ever looked at her the way that Henry was looking at her. She blushed and a wave of heat rolled across her body. "Henry?" she asked, surprised that she found herself a little breathless.

Henry stood looking down at Elizabeth, transfixed by the woman in front of him. He'd almost blurted out "I love you," but somehow managed to stop those words and instead replaced them with this smouldering silence. He wanted to kiss her, really kiss her, not the chaste kisses they'd shared up to this point. He wasn't sure how that would be received, especially since their argument a couple days prior. He heard her say his name and it brought his attention fully back to her. Her flushed cheeks, full red lips, the wanting in her eyes.

It was more than he could take. He brushed his fingers along her hairline, pushing her hair back before tilting her head back and their lips met. It was gentle at first, like all of their kisses. He wrapped his lips around her upper lip sucking it before he drug his tongue across it. Her one hand, still on his chest, clutched his tie holding him in place, the other hand wrapped around his waist. She parted her lips inviting him in.

Henry snaked his arm around her back, pressing her to his body. He explored her mouth and she did the same. Finally breaking apart, Elizabeth looked up at him. "We should do that again sometime."

"Yeah. I'm going to go with sooner than later." He placed both hands on her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Thanks for fixing my tie. You should probably get changed."

"Yeah, I should. She looked at Henry for a while longer before she finally dropped her arms and walked out of the room wondering if she would continue to feel this way now that Henry kissed her. She hoped so.

They walked hand in hand into the funeral home bringing up the tail end of a long line of relatives. A thought had passed through Elizabeth's mind a couple of times over the past three days and she had dismissed it each time, but crossing the threshold into the building, she halted, unable to make herself take another step.

Henry had wondered if Elizabeth would be okay going to the visitation and funeral, but she hadn't indicated otherwise. He didn't want to make an issue where there wasn't one, but he knew immediately what was happening when she froze just inside the door, almost pulling him backwards when he continued to walk and she did not.

Offering a silent thank you that they were the last ones to come in, Henry physically turned Elizabeth around and pushed her out the door. He shuffled her to a bench along the front walk and sat down beside her. "Want to talk about it?" he asked.

"I thought it would be okay. Really I did." She shook her head. "This needs to be about you, not me. I'll be fine." She stood and smoothed the wrinkles out of her solid black dress. Henry took her hand and pulled her back to the bench.

"Please don't do that Elizabeth," Henry said, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. "I'm not going to be fine if you aren't." He leaned in and pulled her closer to him, his arm wrapped around her, underneath her wool peacoat.

"I haven't been in a funeral home since my parents died," Elizabeth said, suddenly sounding defeated. "I didn't think it would be a big deal. But it's the smell. The over flowery, potpourri-y, smell that covers death. It smells exactly the same. But, it's not the same. I need to remember that." She took two deep breaths. "Let's go. People will be looking for you." She stood once again and this time Henry didn't stop her.

"I'll be right here, right beside you." Henry said, taking her hand again. They walked through the door once again and this time Elizabeth wasn't caught off guard. She forced herself to keep walking, signed the guest book at the doorway and entered the parlor. It was only family members currently, but there was still a fairly large group that had accumulated. People were milling about and the noise level, even when they were trying to be quiet was overwhelming. There was one person obviously missing and Henry seemed to notice at the same time because he leaned over and whispered, "Do you see Mom?" Elizabeth shook her head.

"I'll go look for her," Elizabeth said, letting go of Henry's hand, retreating out the side door of the parlor and taking the box of tissues that lay on the table in the doorway. Down a quiet side hall, she found the bathroom, and pushed the door open quietly and found Jo sitting in a recliner in the sitting area weeping softly.

Seeing Elizabeth, Jo immediately sat straighter and tried to wipe her eyes. Elizabeth just shook her head and sat down beside her, offering her the box of tissues. "It's alright. I don't mind. Losing your mom sucks, You've spent the last three days entertaining everyone else. You need a little down time before you tackle this." She took Jo's hand. "If you don't take it now, you'll spend the next two days trying to hold it all together and you won't remember anything that was said or done and you'll regret that." Jo nodded her understanding. "Would you like some company?"

"Honestly, I think I would like to be by myself for a while. I haven't had much alone time."

Elizabeth stood. "Then I'll make sure no one comes in here. Take all the time you need." She started to step to the door when Jo caught her hand.

"Thank you Elizabeth," she said. Elizabeth returned the watery smile and slipped out the door and positioned herself away from the door, but close enough to stop anyone that tried to go in..

Ten minutes or so had passed, when Henry ducked into the hallway, looking worried. "I can't find her."

Elizabeth nodded. "I did. She's taking some time before all of this happens." She gestured to the larger room. "She'll be back when she's ready."

Patrick stuck his head out into the hallway as well. "Jo?" he called.

Elizabeth stepped in front of him. "She's busy at the moment. She'll be back in shortly."

"We're about to start," Patrick said impatiently.

"You'll start when your wife returns." Patrick looked at her like he was ready to argue. "Listen to me. There's not a big rush. Grandma's already dead. Now, you can go back in there and look like the caring husband you are and tell everyone to cool their jets." She turned Patrick around to face the room and sent him off. Patrick glanced over his shoulder at Henry, who just shrugged. Patrick went ahead and whispered something to the priest, who shrugged himself and then sat back down.

It was only another couple minutes when Jo stepped out. Elizabeth took one look at her and ushered her back into the bathroom, pulling concealer, eyeliner and mascara out of her purse and tossing them on the counter. "At some point, some brilliant relative will say some something dumb about getting family pictures since everyone is here and you don't want to look like shit even if you happen to feel that way." Elizabeth quickly applied concealer to hide Jo's dark circles and expertly applied eyeliner and handed her the tube of mascara. "I don't do other people's mascara very well. You don't want to end up looking like a raccoon." Jo smirked and took the tube. She applied it and turned to look at Elizabeth. "Very nice. You look way better than I'm sure you feel, which is the goal."

Jo looked his son's girlfriend up and down. This person she only met a few days ago had pretty much pegged how she felt and had given her just what she needed. Jo sure hoped Henry knew what a treasure he landed, because that's what Elizabeth was. She reached out and gave Elizabeth a hug. "Thanks," she said, and stepped over and pulled the door open, walking tall into the parlor, where she took her place in the front next to Patrick and the priest stood and began the prayer service.

Henry stood with Elizabeth in the doorway. He whispered, "What you did back there was pretty amazing."

"Not amazing at all," she whispered back. "I just wish there had been someone to do something like that for me I needed it. I don't think anyone knew what to do with me though." She laughed softly. "Total wreck doesn't even begin to describe it."

Henry pulled her back against him and wrapped his arm around her middle, and whispered in her ear. "You are amazing and if I ever doubted your ability to handle my father, I am sorry. I don't know that I've ever seen anyone shut him down the way you did and you were much more polite than anyone else would have been." He pecked her cheek. They listened to the rest of the service. At the end, several family members started the Rosary. Elizabeth knew the basic idea behind saying a Rosary, but she'd never heard it before. It sounded odd to her at first, but soon the cadence of the words took on a life of their own. Henry's own low, soothing baritone fell in with the others and she lay her head back on his chest surrounding herself with the reverberation of his voice.

Henry listened to the priest talk about his grandmother. He knew her well and told several stories, a couple of which he hadn't heard. He finished with a prayer and an aunt and a couple cousins started the Rosary. Henry looked around the room as everyone joined in. He could only identify a couple people that weren't Catholic besides Elizabeth. He was going to offer to let her leave if she was uncomfortable, but she seemed to relax against him. He joined in with the others and toward the end, she hooked her fingers into his and pulled them to her mouth kissing them. He hugged her a little tighter.

Afterwards, everyone was milling around and some cousin made an announcement that she wanted to take pictures while everyone was in the same place. Most people gave the woman an odd look, but Jo McCord burst out laughing and proclaimed that it was a fabulous idea. She shot a look at Elizabeth, who just raised her eyebrows and smiled.


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Here's your daily update! I hope you enjoy it. Thank you for the reviews. They do brighten my day!

Chapter 4

Elizabeth wandered toward the kitchen the next morning to see if there was any breakfast casserole left from the day before. She could hear Erin, Shane and Maureen in the kitchen, likely sitting around the table. She overheard the three talking and Maureen refer to her as Queen Elizabeth. That stung, especially since she hadn't really even spent any time with Maureen at all. She noticed that Erin and Shane didn't respond, so at least that was good, but they didn't stop Maureen either. She shrugged figuring they had more skin in the game than she did. They lived with Maureen, while she was only staying here for a few days. It probably wasn't worth it to take a stand against Maureen for someone they barely knew. Elizabeth thought about just going back upstairs, but that breakfast casserole was really good. The rumbling of her stomach made the decision for her and she pushed through the swinging door into the kitchen. "Good morning all," she said with as much chipperness as she could muster.

"Hey," both Erin and Shane replied. Maureen said nothing.

"Is there any of that casserole left? The one from yesterday?" she asked.

Shane tilted his head toward her. "I think it's on the table in the sunroom, but it might be frozen now. The temperature was right at 32℉ last night."

"We'll see. I can stick it in the microwave either way." Elizabeth went through the door with her plate and hacked a piece out of the Pyrex dish. She re-entered the kitchen and placed the plate in the microwave. "What time do we have to leave?"

Maureen looked at Elizabeth like she'd grown a second head. "The church is just literally around the corner. So, maybe three minutes before we have to be there." Maureen's snotty and condescending tone rubbed Elizabeth the wrong way.

"Okay, perhaps a better question would be, what time do we need to be there?" She eyed Maureen, daring her to say something else.

Erin spoke up, sensing the tension between the two older girls. "Mom said we need to be there no later than 9:45, but she wants to be there at 9:30."

"Perfect, we leave at 9:27. Thank you for your assistance in answering my question." Elizabeth took her plate out of the microwave, grabbed a fork and headed upstairs.

She sat on the end of Henry's bed pushing her food around the plate with the fork. "What exactly did I do to piss your sister off?" Elizabeth asked Henry.

"I'm sure you didn't do anything specifically. With Maureen, it's probably a lot of little things that are mostly in her head. She's jealous of what she thinks you have. You're smart and pretty. Mom likes you and so do Shane and Erin. You don't back down from her. Yeah, that's probably a big one. She likes to control things and you won't let her control you."

"But I could back down and let her have her way if it would help," Elizabeth said.

"Don't you dare." Henry turned away from the mirror where he was buttoning his shirt to look at her. "Don't give Maureen the time of day. It won't help if you do. She's too much like Dad."

Elizabeth poked a bite in her mouth and thought while she chewed. "I like them Henry."

"Like who?" he asked.

"Your family. Even Maureen and your dad. They've shaped you into who you are. And I like you."

"You like me, huh?"

"I like you. A lot." She grinned widely at him. He walked over to where she was sitting and leaned down to kiss her.

"You taste like bacon," he said, smiling.

"What else?" she asked, flirtatiously.

He kissed her again. "Eggs.". He kissed her a third time. "I don't even care." He took her plate away from her and reached out to set it on his desk before coming back to focus on her. He kissed her again.

"I need to get ready," she said while tipping her head back so he could kiss her neck.

"Yeah, you should probably do that." Henry said, continuing to plant kisses until her reached her collarbone. 'You are very sexy, you know that."

Elizabeth giggled nervously. "We'll see if you still think so when I'm wearing my funeral attire and not my pajamas." She squirmed away from Henry and stood, picking up her plate. She started toward the door, but turned and came back to stand in front of Henry. She ran her hand up his chest and stopped when it landed on his cheek. "I think you are the sexiest man alive and you make me feel things I've never felt before." She stood on tiptoe to place a sweet kiss on his lips and then she was gone. Henry fell back on his bed, grinning like a fool.

Elizabeth stepped into the bathroom with her duffle bag and dress on a hanger. She quickly fixed her hair, pulling it back and pinning it with clips. She then applied minimal makeup and sat down on the toilet seat to pull her black hose up. "I hate pantyhose," she muttered under her breath. "Not meant for tall people. At all." She finally got them somewhat functional and slipped her dress over her head. It was a simple sleeveless straight black dress. She got it zipped most of the way and dug her black knit cardigan out of her duffle, slipping it on to keep her warm on this cooler than average March 1st. She quickly put her jewelry on and placed her watch back on her wrist. Checking herself on last time in the mirror, she picked up her bags and headed out of the bathroom. She dug her heels out of her bag and tossed the rest of her things on the mattress she was sleeping on in the middle of the girls' room and headed downstairs.

Henry was waiting for her at the bottom on the stairs. "Yes," he said enthusiastically." She gave him a strange look. "You are most certainly sexy in your funeral attire," he whispered. She blushed, but tried to hide it by turning around.

"Do you think you could finish zipping my zipper?" she asked, dropping her heels to the floor and pulling down her cardigan to expose the open zipper. Henry moved her hair to the side and finished zipping it up.

"There you go," he said, letting his hands rest on her shoulders longer than necessary. She bent down and picked up her heels and proceeded into the kitchen. Jo was scurrying around moving things from place to place.

Elizabeth caught up with her near the refrigerator. "Do you need some time before you go today?"

"I think I'm okay, but thank you." Jo squeezed Elizabeth's hand. She turned her attention to the room. "We need to leave in about ten minutes. Make sure you're ready."

Elizabeth fixed herself a piece of toast and poured a cup of coffee, which Henry drank part of. "Hey there buddy. We aren't married. Get out of my coffee," she laughed.

"I'm trying to save us from having to wash extra dishes," he said, refilling her cup before handing it back. She smiled. Elizabeth leaned against the counter and watched as everyone bustled around doing last minute things. This was definitely a scene missing from her own life now that her parents were gone, but she didn't know if she'd ever had it, with it being just her and Will. It wasn't that her own family never rushed around back in the day to get ready in the mornings or for weekend activities, but their rushing didn't look quite so messy because there were fewer of them. She'd never thought about having kids before other than in the most vague of terms, but now she decided that she wanted at least three, if not four children. She wanted the warm and noisy hullabaloo that was the McCord family. She looked over at Henry, who was now joking with Shane. She wanted his children and she wanted them to grow up in this family. She grinned at her own thoughts. Jo was right. She was going to need to start drinking a little more if she was going to spend much more time around this crazy bunch.

"Time to go," Jo's voice rang out over the chatter. Henry stepped over and took Elizabeth's hand.

"You look like you're in a good mood," Henry said.

"Just thinking about some things. I'll tell you later." She wondered if she would actually have the courage to be honest and tell Henry that she loved him and wanted him to be her forever love.

They walked into the church and Elizabeth's breath was taken away. The exterior of the building was beautiful, yet daunting, with its many spires and elaborate brickwork, but that didn't hold a candle to the interior. Elaborately carved woodwork, four side altars dedicated to various people. She would've asked Henry, but knew he would be unable to provide a short answer and she wanted to study everything. She'd ask later.

The crucifix was enormous. An intricately carved masterpiece. It was a beautiful sculpture, if that's the area of art it would fall into. Occasionally she wished she could see more in it than just that. She thought back to the time right after her parents died. Back then, she wished she had some sort of belief that would make it easier, but now, a few years removed from it, she wasn't sure how much it would have helped. She'd seen just as many people abandon their faith in hard times as those that clung to it.

They were all still standing in the back of the church when the director of the mortuary popped his head in. He spoke with Jo quietly and then disappeared. Patrick and Shane moved to open the outside church doors and the casket was brought inside. It was moved along a wall in the back and they opened it one last time. Patrick held Jo's hand as he led her up and one by one family members stepped forward to say their final goodbyes. When it was Henry's turn, he looked down at Elizabeth, silently questioning whether or not she would want to come with him. She took his hand in both of hers and squeezed it, and they went up. She watched Henry, who closed his eyes in prayer. She looked down and thanked the woman that she'd never met, but had greatly shaped the man she loved. A single tear slipped down her face and she quickly wiped it away, leaning into Henry's arm, her hands still attached to his. Henry moved away and Elizabeth followed.

They took their spots along the wall and waited for the rest of the family to say their goodbyes. Henry stood with his back pressed to the wall and was suddenly overwhelmed with gratitude for the women in his life. HIs mom, who stood on the opposite wall, was always strong and loving, but leaned on his father in hard times, just as she was doing now, both literally and figuratively. His grandmother, always seemed to be there offering just what he needed, whether it be a warm cookie, a band-aid, a listening ear or an occasional kick in the ass. That thought caused him to smirk, and Elizabeth tilted her head to look back at him to make sure he was alright. He smiled at her and kissed the top of her head pulling her a little closer. Elizabeth. He had known that he had feelings for her, and was actually afraid of bringing her to meet his family, but having spent the last five days watching her learn to navigate the McCord family, he was sure that he loved her and that he always wanted her at his side. His only regret was that she never got to meet his beloved grandmother. He tried to keep his emotions inside, but as they closed the casket, he sucked in a deep breath and tears welled up in his eyes. Elizabeth instinctively knew and shifted her body, threaded her arms around his middle and holding him close, her head on his chest.

The family watched as the casket was draped in a white cloth and topped with a gorgeous casket floral spray and a crucifix. Henry, Shane and four other cousins, who were pallbearers, gathered on either side of the casket and rolled it up the center aisle and turned it parallel to the main altar. The family followed behind filing into the pews in the front. Henry was waiting for Elizabeth and they sat in the second pew with Henry's siblings and their cousins.

It was then that the doors opened and others entered filling the pews behind them. Elizabeth sat quietly thinking about her own parents' funeral. She couldn't remember much about it as a whole. It was in the funeral home and not a church since neither of her parents had been churchgoers. But the things she seemed to remember were the small details. She obviously remembered the smell of the funeral home, even though she didn't realize the impact it made on her at the time. She could still feel the plushness of the carpet that her new heels sunk into, giving a physical element to her deep feeling of being off balance. They were her first pair of real heels that her mom bought the week before the accident, the ones purchased for the school dance that she never attended. She could still see delicate petals of the white roses she was given to hold at the cemetery. She focused on the slightly turned edges of the petals that had started to fall victim to the heat. She felt the pull of Will's hand at her elbow tugging her toward the grave where she dropped the roses hearing the soft thump of them hitting the casket..

A shiver went up her spine, and Henry put his arm around her. "Are you okay?" he whispered.

She looked at him and thought about lying, but knew that he would see right through her. "No," she said. "You?"

"No." She put her head on his shoulder and placed her hand on his thigh. Henry covered her hand with his and waited for the service to begin.

The actual funeral Mass was pretty nondescript as far as Elizabeth was concerned. She really wasn't following along other than to do what everyone else was doing. She watched Henry carefully, comforting him as best she could. At the end, Henry and the other pallbearers went and stood in the front, flanking the casket. There were ushers that emptied the pews, and the family went to stand outside near the hearse. Others went to their cars and waited to get in the procession line to the cemetery.

Elizabeth became a much younger version of herself doing the same thing years earlier. She thought she had herself under control until Henry and the other pallbearers walked outside carrying the casket. Elizabeth closed her eyes and tried to breathe through the memories of not one, but two hearses sitting side by side and her parents being rolled into the back. She stood stock still not wanting to cause any kind of scene, but the waves of despair she felt now, just like that day, were unrelenting. She tried to pull herself out of it. She knew this was Henry's grandmother, a woman she'd never met. She knew that this woman had lived a joyous life and had been around to watch her children have children of their own. It wasn't the same kind of situation at all, but somehow she couldn't separate her feelings then from the situation now. She felt herself being wrapped into someone's arms and she couldn't hold on any longer. All of the tears she couldn't cry then came bubbling out right then. Those tears she'd tucked away, swearing that she'd never let go.

She heard Henry's voice, distant but strong, "I've got her now." She felt her fingers being pried off the fabric they were wrapped around and being shifted into someone else's embrace. She knew she should try to figure out who she had been clinging to, but she just couldn't think about it. "Shhh, babe. It's okay," Henry whispered against her. Finally, after what seemed like hours, but was probably only a few minutes, Elizabeth calmed enough to look at Henry.

"I'm sorry," she choked out. "This shouldn't be about me."

"There's nothing to be sorry for. Do you think you want to go to the cemetery? We don't have to if you don't want to."

"Henry, you need to go. You'll regret it if you don't. Come on.". She tugged Henry toward the line of cars that stinks had family members climbing inside. "Which one?"

"This one," Henry said, gesturing to the car immediately following the hearse. She got into the limo to find the rest of the McCords already inside. She looked around and Maureen was visibly biting her cheek.

"Let me have it," Elizabeth said to Henry's older sister. "I know you have something snide to say." Elizabeth dabbed the rest of her tears away with Henry's handkerchief.

"Mom told me she wouldn't pay my car insurance if I said anything, so I'm opting out of this discussion," Maureen said.

Elizabeth found that extremely amusing and couldn't help but laugh. "If I'd known that was all it would take, I would've made that request five days ago."

Patrick chuckled and Elizabeth turned her attention to him, noticing his shirt which was damp with soft makeup smudges on it. "Uh, sorry I bawled all over you."

Patrick shrugged. "You'll find it hard to believe, but that isn't the first time that's happened, although usually it's with my own woman, not someone else's.". Jo threw an elbow into Patrick's side and he flinched, causing Elizabeth to laugh, as did Erin and Shane. Even Henry and Maureen cracked a smile.

As the car pulled into the cemetery, Henry murmured, "You can stay in the car if you want."

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, I'll be fine." Henry eyed her. "Really. I will."

They got out and made their way to a canopy next to the gravesite and sat down. Henry, Shane and the other pallbearers carried the casket to the grave, then took their places with the family. Once everyone made their way to the grave, the priest said a prayer and gave a blessing over the site. One by one, the family members removed a flower from the floral spray and dropped it into the grave. People began to disperse. Jo and some other family members stood around and talked for a while, then wandered off toward the car. Elizabeth thought about the events of the last few days and then of her parents, who would never get to meet Henry. It saddened her greatly, but then she thought about Henry's grandma. She wouldn't have the opportunity to meet her in person, but she'd helped Elizabeth face a lot of things surrounding her parents' deaths that she didn't even realize she needed to happen. Elizabeth felt a lot more confident than she had in a long time and she knew it came from a sense of peace she gained these past few days. Elizabeth stood and walked toward the grave, and plucked a white rose from the remaining flowers. She studied it for a moment, letting her fingers brush against the petals' perfect edges. She dropped it into the grave and whispered, "Thank you."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It was hours later, near dusk, when Elizabeth and Henry sat on the back steps of the McCord house holding hands and sitting silently next to each other thinking.

"How are you doing?" Elizabeth asked Henry.

"I'm much better about Grandma Rosa. I think she is most definitely in a better place. I'll miss her though."

Elizabeth lay her head on Henry's arm. "Of course. I wish I had the opportunity to know her."

"Yeah, me too." Henry scraped up as much courage as he could muster and started to talk before he could back down. "I've been thinking about things a lot the past few days."

"Me too," Elizabeth interrupted.

"We are kind of new. Only a few months."

"Yeah," Elizabeth said in a resigned voice.

"But the way I feel about you seems-" Henry paused and glanced at Elizabeth to find her looking expectantly at him. "Well, it seems like we've been together longer. I feel like I shouldn't feel the way I feel about you having only dated for four months. It's like, to feel this way, I should be dating you years or something." Elizabeth nodded in agreement. "I look at you and I see my future. Everything about my future can change, except you. You are always by my side."

"With our kids. I want at least 3 and maybe 4," Elizabeth blurted out. Henry was pulled from his own reflections to look at her.

"You want to have kids?" he asked.

Elizabeth blushed, unable to believe that she actually said that, but now that it was out there, she decided she might as well commit to it. "With you, yes, maybe 3 or 4. But not now, though. Later. And I agree with you about thinking it's too soon to feel like this. That's why I've been telling myself that it cannot be real, that it's just infatuation. But it's not, Henry. I'm not just infatuated with you. I love you."

"You do?" he asked, his heart about to burst from his chest and his smile wide

"Yeah, I do."

"I do too. I mean I love you. I've known it for a while now. I was just scared to say it out loud. I was afraid it would scare you off or you'd think I wasn't sincere. Or maybe you just would tell me that you would never feel the same about me." Henry looked away from her, embarrassed.

"I understand, and I get it." She squeezed his hand. "Thank you for everything you've done over the past few days," she said.

"I should be the one thanking you. I can't believe that there was a time that I didn't want you to meet my family."

Elizabeth pulled back, "Why?"

"Because they're crazy and loud and belittling and belligerent, and they don't accept new people. I just didn't want you to meet them and then decide that I wasn't worth the drama they cause." He took a deep breath, "But I should have known better, because you can look past all of that and still see the good in each of them, and that makes me love you more."

"Just wait until you meet Will," she said, rolling her eyes. "You might just decide that I'm the one with too much family drama." She playfully nudged his shoulder and he laughed.

"I doubt that very much. Let's go inside. It's getting cold." Henry stood and pulled Elizabeth up. They started walking into the house together.

"Are we leaving tomorrow?" she asked.

"We're going to have to. I've missed a lot and I'm sure you have too."

"The bright side is that we can spend a lot of quality library time together," she said as she squeezed his arm tight.

"I'm glad you see that as a bright side, because I'm pretty sure that's what it's going to be."

That night, Henry lay in his bed that night looking up at the stars through his window. He was more at peace than he'd been in a long time. Things seemed to be working out with Elizabeth. He and his dad were are better terms than they had been for quite a while. Then there was his grandma. He regretted the time he spent avoiding the idea of bringing Elizabeth home to meet his family. If he had just gone ahead, his grandma would have had the chance to meet Elizabeth and he knew that Grandmas Rosa would have loved her. He said a prayer for Rosa's soul and felt calmed. In that moment, in his heart, he knew that Rosa had seen Elizabeth and approved. He smiled and rolled over falling asleep quickly for the first time in a long time.

Elizabeth was in the next room over, tossing and turning. Her mind was running in a hundred different directions. She forced herself to lay still and try to sort out her thoughts. It was mostly good stuff. She told Henry that she loved him and he loved her too. She felt a peace about her parents that she hadn't even known wasn't there until it was. There was her schoolwork, which would need to be caught up, but she had high grades in every class, so doing the makeup work shouldn't be a problem. None of these things seemed like it would be enough to make her feel so unsettled. What would calm her down? Not sleeping the night before she needed to drive five hours wouldn't be good.

An idea came to mind. It took Elizabeth a few minutes to decide if it was a good idea or not, but finally she surrendered to the notion that this was the best chance she had at going to sleep. She sat up and gathered her blanket. Quietly, she left the girls' room and tiptoed down the hall to Henry's room. She turned the doorknob and silently slipped inside. Her breath hitched when she caught sight of Henry sleeping, the moonlight streaming across his muscular, bare chest. She sucked in a deep breath. Perhaps she hadn't thought this through. She rolled her eyes. "Just trying to go to sleep," she thought. She climbed in between Henry and the wall from the end of the bed and settled on her side next to him, pulling her blanket with her.

Still sleeping, Henry sensed she was there. He turned into her and wrapped an arm around her back, pulling her close. Elizabeth snuggled into Henry's chest and immediately felt calmer. She breathed in his scent and listened to the steady beat of his heart and knew this was where she wanted to spend the rest of her life. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the life she would share with Henry.

AN: This is now complete. I hope you enjoyed it. Just in case, anyone is questioning how fast Henry and Elizabeth professed their love, I just wanted to throw out that I dated my husband for two months before "I love you's" were exchanged and we were engaged at 3 months, married at a year and have been married for nearly 20 years, so it can happen.


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